Crater Rim - Bridle Path to Rapaki Track

Start: Bridle Path car park, Summit Road

Finish: Rapaki Track car park, Summit Road

Distance: 3.4km

Time: 1.5 hours one way

Dogs: Must be kept on a leash

Description:

Starting from the car park at the top of the Bridle Path, head west towards the Rapaki Track, climbing uphill on the Lyttelton Harbour side of the crater rim before turning up towards Castle Rock and Tors Reserve. There are great views from here out across Lyttelton Harbour and all the bays.

At this point, either continue around the slopes of Witch Hill Reserve and descend to where the path eventually joins with a MTB track and becomes shared use for a short distance. Exit onto Summit Road at the temporary road closure gate (closed to all non-essential vehicles and safe to walk/ride bikes).

Finish at the car park approximately 50m further on or continue down into St Martins via the Rapaki Track.

Te Ahi a Tamatea (The Fire of Tamatea) is the Māori name for the Giant’s Causeway. The name refers to when the famous explorer Tamatea-Pōkai-Whenua stood on the Port Hills and invoked a powerful incantation to a well-known tohunga in the North Island, who sent down hot volcanic ashes and fires to warm his travelling party who had been captured in a storm.